Comb



. Dec-1,1959 w. R. WATKINS 2,915,071

COMB

Filed lay 16, 1958 Willie Rufus Watkins Y INVENTOR.

States Patent COMB Willie Rufus Watkins, Greensboro, N.C., assignor offifty percent to Alfred T. Staples, Greensboro, N.C.

i] Application May 16, 1958, Serial No. 735,154 r 3 Claims. 01. 132-45with the teeth of the comb engaged with the hair thus enabling theclippers to pass over the teeth and the hand without injury to the handand without interference to the path of movement of the clippers therebyenabling the hair to be accurately cut along the top surface of the combthus facilitating the cutting of flat tops and further providing a safecomb for use by a barber.

The ends of the body 12 are provided with rigid end members and the endsof the teeth 14 'are arranged in such a manner that the central teethare shorter than the edge teeth thus defining a concave curve.

Figure4 illustrates a thickened body portion on the main body 12 withthe thickened portion designated by the numeral 24-and which provides anoffset for the teeth in that the thickened portion 24 will engage thesurface of the head and generally hold the teeth in an inclined positionand will also structurally reinforce the comb.

Each of the teeth 14 is constructed of a highly flexible material suchas hard rubber or metal, or plastic, so that when the ends of the teethare engaged with the a surface of the head, the teeth will easilyconform to and hand grip so that when the comb is used by a barber theelectric clippers may pass over the comb in a path of movementabove the'position of the hand of the person'holding the comb without injury tothe hand and without interference of the hand with the normalmaneuverable passage of the clippers.

. Another important feature of the present invention is toprovide a combin accordance with the preceding objects in which each individual toothis provided with a" plurality of pointed projections along a lengthwiseedge thereof forengaging the hair so that the hair may be caught holdof, lifted up, and pulled back into a generally vertical position or forany purpose desired when cutting the hair or arranging the hair in aparticular manner.

Another important feature of the present invention is to provide a combincluding-all of the preceding objects together with a construction inwhich the ends of the teeth are'arranged so that they define a concavecurve.

Other important featuresof the present invention include its simplicityof construction, ease of use, effectiveness for its particular-purposesand its relatively inexpensive manufacture cost. 7

These together with other objects and advantages which willbecome'subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed,.referencebeing had to the-accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a plan view of the comb of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the comb;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially upon a planepassing along section line 3-3 of Figure 2 illustrating the constructionof the teeth and particularly the barbs or projections thereon; and

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken substantially upon a plane passingalong section line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 generallydesignates the comb of the present invention which includes an elongatedmain body portion 12 or backing member of relatively thick constructionhaving a plurality of teeth l4 integral therewith and an extendingdownwardly offset end member 16 terminating in a hand grip 18 which isdisposed below the plane of the main body 12. This facilitates thepositioning of the teeth 14 in the hair and permits the comb to beheldflat engage the entire contour of the head surface.

Each tooth 14 is further provided on one side thereof only with aplurality of hook shaped projections '26 confronting a smooth side of anadjacent tooth and which may also be termed barbs each of which isdefined'by an outwardly inclined edge 28 and a concave andlongitudinally inclined top surface 30 as clearly shown in Figure 3 thusgenerally simulating a'hook construction so that when the teeth areinserted into the hair, thehair holding barbs or projections on theteeth will support and hold the strands of hair more securely thusenabling the same to be pulled to and held accessibly'in an-eay-to-cut'position by moving the comb. The invention is especially useful when itis desired to pull the hair back up aparticular manner for cutting thehair evenlyr The comb of the present invention provides an arrangementin which the teeth are flexible and having a concave curve defined bythe outer end thereof and provided with spurs for engaging the'hair forpulling the same with the comb when the comb is moved away from the.

hair. The comb further is providedwith a downwardlyoffset handle toenable the comb to be disposed in the hair for holding the same whilecutting and trimming with the clippers being capable of moving straightacross the comb without interruption by the hand holding the comb. Whilethe teeth have been illustrated as extending laterally-of the main body12, it is' also within the purview of the present invention to extendthe teethlongitudinally of the main body 12 for use in the'same manner.Also, the handle may be attached to the end of the' cor'r'ib' as shown,or in the middle of the back-edge'thereofso that the handle isperpendicular with the comb. A clip-on gauge such as normally employedin clippers may be attached to the comb for determining the length ofthe hair when giving a crew cut and for aiding in maintaining; thedesired length.

It will be evident that the offsetting of the hand grip, minimizes thelikelihood that the hand holding the grip might offer interference.Therefore, the offset grip assures a clear area for Work. The teeth withthe hair hooking and retaining spurs or projections hold the hair inposition and the comb can be shifted backward anti; forward with thelocks or strands still held in an upstanding state. Then, too, thecurvate or arcuate contourconsidering the plan configuration seen inFig. 1 results. from the predetermined progressive lengthening andshortening of the terminal ends of the teeth and consequently providesan arcuate leading edge which, generally spealbing, conforms to thecontour of the average head or scalp and permits the teeth to pick uphair on the sides as: well as the top. The points of the teeth are bluntand the spurs: or projections: are designed and positionedso as. not. tocontact. or irritatingly touch the scalp of the, customer.

Simple and brief instructions which can be followed in theE mode of usewould involve placing, the fingers atopithe handleand the thumb to theside. The user may. push the leading arcuate or. curvilinealedge, formedby the teeth, into the hair fromthe forehead back. It is sometimes.advisable to tilt the teeth upward resting and fulcruming, if desired,the back of the comb on the head; and then, tozraise to the cuttinglevel which seems at thetimeto-be most desired or advantageous. In usethe clippers can be caused to pass over the hair for clipping actionwithout. interference from the hands. It may be stressed, too, that thebarbed edges or projections: on the comb teeth and, the projectionsthemselves constitute auxiliaryv teeth; so, each main tooth is thusprovided along at least oneedge, the edge at right angles, to the backof the comb, with auxiliary teeth and the other edge, which may be,called the rearward edge, is plain or straight from end to, end.Equipped with this comb, the experienced barber will find it capable ofall of the advantages and features which are to be associated therewith.

Theforegoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of theinvention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to,, falling within the scope of the invention asclaimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1'. For use primarily by a barber when giving a customer a fiat top haircut, a special purpose comb comprising an elongated fiat-faced bodyembodying an elongated rigid back provided at forward and rearward ends,respectively, with right angularly disposed distal and proximal endmembers, said end members and back defining and providing an elongatedgenerally U-shaped frame, said proximal member being provided with anangled connecting web joined to a hand grip, said hand grip beingdisposed in a plane offset relative to the plane of said frame, onelengthwise edge of said back being provided between the respectivedistal and proximal end members with a plurality of right angularlydisposed spaced parallel combing teeth, each tooth having a forwardlyfacing edge and a rearwardly facing edge, the rearwardly facing edgesbeing linearly straight and smooth from end to end, the forwardly facingedges being provided with longitudinally spaced projections adapted toassist the barber in engaging strands of hair, lifting the same awayfrom the head and supporting and holding otherwise flimsy strands ofhair in a position for clipping and cutting relative to the scalp andclippers to facilitate, cutting said strands with the clippers, saidprojec- 4 tions being spaced apart and having pointed hook-liketerminals spaced, fromv adjacent edge, portions of, the complementaltooth and providing hair-strand hooking, seating and retaining barbs,the hook-like terminals on said projections being directed toward thebacking member, certain of the teeth at the center of the over-all bankof teeth being of a length less than the length of the teeth to the leftand right thereof, and each tooth to the left or right of the relativelyshort central teeth being slightly longer than the next adjacentcompanion tooth increasing; slightly. inlength in amanner. to define aleading edge, said leading edge being arcuate in. plan, the shape of thearc of said leading edge being adapted to conform with the normalcontours of a persons head.

2. For use primarily by a barber when giving a customer a flat top haircut, a special purpose comb comprising an elongated flat-faced bodyembodying an elongated rigid back provided at opposite ends with rightangularly. disposed distal and proximal end members respectively, saidend members. and back defining and pro.- viding an elongated generallyU-shaped frame, said proximal member being provided with an angledconnecting web joined to a hand grip, said hand grip being disposed ina. plane offset relative to the plane of said frame, one lengthwise edgeof said back being provided between the distal and proximal end memberswith: a plurality of right angularly disposed spaced parallel combingteeth, each tooth having a first lengthwise edge and a second lengthwiseedge, the, second lengthwise edges being linearly straight and smoothfrom end to end, the first lengthwise edges being provided with spacedprojections adapted to assist the barber inengaging strands of hair,lifting the same away from the head and supporting and holding otherwiseflimsy strands of hair in a posi tion for clipping and cutting relativeto the scalp and clippers to facilitate cutting said strandswith theclippers, said projections being spaced apart and havinghook-liketerminals providing notch-like hair retaining seats, the

hook-like terminals on each tooth being directed toward the backingmember and being further directed toward the smooth straight edge of thenext adjacent tooth.

3. The structure defined in claim 2 and wherein the end members andbacking member in conjunction with the teeth cooperate in providing acomb, said combbeing relatively broad to facilitate supporting andguiding the hair clippers and which, being offset and in a plane abovethe plane of the hand grip readily. assists the barber in effectuallykeeping an, eye on the exact portion of the head which is being workedon.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

